Cauf Skiviers wrote:
Donald Trump might indeed help make Europe great again, if only European leaders would set aside their faux outrage and take him seriously.

His previous warnings about Europe's over-reliance on Russian energy, the danger of open border policies, and the consequences of reckless military underspending were once met with disdain. However, following Putin's

invasion

of Ukraine, years of economic stagnation, and a migrant crisis that has toppled governments across the UK, Italy, Germany, and potentially soon France, it would be wise for Europe to heed Trump's advice this time around.

Since the end of the Cold War, and particularly over the last decade, Europe has adopted a clearly unsustainable economic model, one that relied on cheap Russian energy, massive trade deficits with China, U.S. taxpayer-subsidized defense, and a bloated welfare stateboth burdened and simultaneously kept afloat by mass migration.

This approach has plunged the continent into a permanent economic crisis, crippling its industry and infrastructure, compromising Europe's energy security, eroding social cohesion, and undermining its ability to defend itself. Until recently, this model survived on artificially low interest rates and burgeoning debt levels, but now the failure of the European model is exposed for the world to see.

The good news, though, is that Donald Trump is now dealing the cards on international trade, offering Europe a choice between a winning hand and a losing one. The bad news is that it's up to European leaders to choose wisely.

The winning hand involves a partnership where Europe increases its purchases of U.S. energy goods, boosts defense spending with American contractors, and adopts a stricter trade policy towards China. This creates a win-win situation, where the U.S. addresses its trade deficit with European allies, while helping them bolster their defense and energy independence, keeping antagonistic powers like Russia and China at bay.

The losing hand involves tariffs that would further strain Europe's already faltering economy.

In 2018, the EU opted for the losing route, dismissing Trump's attempts to negotiate a more balanced trade relationship and responding to U.S. tariffs by raising import duties on American productsa move that ultimately harmed Europe's own economy. This time, however, it would be wiser to choose a different path.

The U.S. is already the largest supplier of LNG to Europe, which suggests that increased energy trade is both feasible and mutually beneficial, especially if it replaces Russian gas. Trump has prioritized unleashing America's energy resources in his second term, focusing on Alaska and the Outer Continental Shelf. Increased European demand could help accelerate the necessary investments.

Boosting defense spending in Europe presents, admittedly, a much greater challenge, given many countries' chronic budget deficits and cumbersome procurement processes. But, with Putin knocking at its door, it's high time for Europe to straighten out its priorities while it still can.

Europe's alignment with the Trump Administration's efforts to counter

China's

predatory trade strategies should be straightforward, but it won't be. Although the vast majority of the European Commission's trade violation investigations, mostly anti-dumping cases, target unfair Chinese trade practices, the EU maintains a pragmatic, self-fashioned image as a bastion

of

liberal free trade. This perspective, although detached from reality, resonates with the mindset of the average eurocrat.

The trade deficit between the U.S. and Europe is large$150 billion. Still, that is only half of the U.S.'s $300 billion trade deficit with China. The

EU

faces a similar deficit with China, totaling $291 billion, a situation that underscores how the U.S. and EU are natural trade partners and, by enhancing their collaboration, both could potentially benefit at the expense of their mutual adversaries.

There's a risk, or even the certainty, that this alignment will prompt China to impose trade barriers and tariffs. But if Europeans are listening to

Trump

carefully, it's not a matter of "if" the EU will be drawn into a trade war, but rather which side it will choose.

Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank, seems to understand that, as she has advised European leaders to negotiate rather

than

retaliate and "buy American to avoid a Trump trade war." This sentiment was echoed last week in Davos by Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan Chase, who

praised

Trump's strategy as effective in "bringing people to the negotiating table."

Now, it's up to European leaders to take a different approach to Trump: move beyond the usual childish contempt and recognize the opportunities he will present. By working with Trump, they have the chance to steer Europe away from the path of economic vulnerability and geopolitical irrelevance,

towards

greater energy security, economic prosperity, and military readiness.

In short, they have the opportunity to make Europe great again.

MEgA. Has a cool ring to it until you think about the fat guy in where was it New Zealand? 🇳🇿


This is a response to the post seen at: http://www.jlaforums.com/viewtopic.php?p=682954069#682954069

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